The training and infrastructure costs of the F-35 versus those of other aircraft

Simply put, conducting a comparative cost-benefit analysis would allow the NFPS to provide a truly comprehensive picture of what choices and trade-offs the government faces.

Conducting such as analysis would, of course, be very time consuming and complex, but it would help ensure that the government has the best possible information when considering a replacement for the CF-18s.

Finally, it does not appear that the NFPS will report on or examine the critical component of this procurement, namely, the underlying policy behind it.

All defence procurements must be linked to government policy.

This policy guides the military when they frame their requirements and it ultimately justifies the expenditure of funds associated with a capital program.

Thus far, there has not been a clear statement of what defence policies and priorities are guiding the procurement of the CF’s new fighters.

Instead, it appears that the RCAF’s requirements are driving policy, the exact opposite of how this relationship should unfold.

Perhaps this is an unfair statement.

Yet the government has not made an effort to properly explain the policy basis of this program.

Simply stating that the CF needs new fighters is not enough. We need to know what these fighters are expected to do and how that informs the setting of particular requirements.

These are not incidental questions.

Particularly at a time when defence expenditures are being cut and the government recognizes that the current capital program is not affordable, policy is expected to guide the difficult choices that must be made regarding what capabilities should be prioritized, which are not absolutely necessary, and which are merely optional for Canada.

I will stop there.

I look forward to our discussion.

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Published by Philippe Lagassé

I am associate professor and the William and Jeanie Barton Chair at the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs, Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada. My research focuses on Canadian defence policy and politics,
executive-legislative relations, and the Crown and Parliament in the Westminster tradition.
View all posts by Philippe Lagassé